Life by the Kunai
by Dragon Eternal
Summary: The last Hokage was murdered by the escapee, Uchiha Itachi. After the revenge was dealt, the village was left with one question. Who now will take the place as Hokage?


I do not own Naruto, but this story is mine.   
  
" " speech  
  
- - thoughts  
  
[ ] Kyubi's intercessions  
  
Oh yeah, this is done in 1st person point of view, the majority any way.   
  
Read on  
  
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Shadows leapt, gracefully, lethally. They danced along the forest where oak and ash trees watched silently, applauding with the noise of rustling leaves. Others watched through the wooded glade, circling the pair of shadows less than a mile away. The watchers were of twenty, old and young alike, armed with weapons to remove one from the living.  
  
Such a miracle, so beautiful and horrible. The decision for the next Hokage was at hand. The last had fallen to the escapee, Uchiha Itatchi. Now two more shadows arose to claim the place above. Now, among the wooded arena, they would fight it out for the victor.  
  
Ten of the twenty were hunter-nins, two squads of them spread to the west and east of the forest, five men a peice. The Jokoku squad, lead by Hyuga Neji and the Hokando squad, lead by Gaso Tenten, each having two senior members and newer graduates. The jounin team to north was led by Rock Lee. To the south were the jounin led by Shinosuke. The teams consisted of teacher and student, as the old were dying off or were dead. Yet, this was one fight even the dead would want to see.   
  
The winds swirled and it seemed the leaves themselves froze in air in fear of drawing attention to themselves. Over strained ears the watchers could hear faint words being echoed across the hollow woodlands. One thing was sure though, one would walk away, the other would be dragged away.  
  
***  
  
Sliding back, I look at Sasuke, my hands snaking back to my kunai. This was insane! Why hadn't I been able to access Kyubi yet?! "Oi Sasuke!" I holler. "You ready to stop yet?" My black haired rival smirked back at me. "Not a chance, dead last."   
  
"Hiyaaaa-AAAAH!"   
  
I clash against the Uchiha, my kunai fencing against his. Staring hard, I could see eyes spinning. -Damn you...- I snarl. Leaping back, I try to break the spell, or at least try to stop the contact currently. As expected, Sasuke mimicked me, jumping three yards back as well. "So, you finally st-  
  
"-arted using the eyes on me huh?" Sasuke finished for me. With a small nod, I knew that he was going to try to end this quickly. My partner, my rival, my friend. We shared the same bread and bled from like wounds from the same missions. I also knew that he couldn't hold the trance for more than an hour and a half..  
  
"Let's---"  
  
"--- get this party started." Sasuke finished once again. As fast as I could, I drew nine more kunai between each finger. He might be able to mimic me, but he wont be able to keep the same armnant as me. Charging forward, I try slicing in combinations, trying very carefully not to use my trademark taijutsu.  
  
Blocked, every single one. "Damn it Sasuke." I glare. His mouth didn't move, but I knew his mind was whirling faster and faster. We continued to fight it out, every move of mine mimicked or blocked, forcing me to fight a mirror copy of myself. I was tiring myself out.  
  
With a fast break, I lept over twenty meters back. Breathing deeply, I felt my sweat rolling down my arms into my clenched palms. I remembered faintly that the sun wasn't even above the horizon all the way when we started this fight. Now, the mist around me had evaporated. Had we really been fighting so long?  
  
Snapping back to reality, I could feel the minutes tick by, every once and a while we would break off, only to charge back in. I knew that any kind of ninjutsu would be countered, any move I did taken. Now though, I was getting too ticked to care. Snarling during one of our breaks, I charged back in, raising my chakra."Take--" I reach back with my left hand, preparing my move. I didn't care at the moment, this was going on too far.  
  
"--THIS!" Sasuke yelled back. My move, executed with the kunai flowing into the signs, going faster and faster, yet it was too late to stop at the moment, I was going too fast.  
  
"MIRAGE BARRAGE!"  
  
When I first made this move, it was to assinate a missing nin by dismembering and incinerating him in one fatal move. Forming a hexagon with my doppledangers, I'd take position above my opponent, preparing a fireblast, my doppledangers dismembering my opponent. Lethal, quick, and usually quiet.   
  
I did not want to go like this.  
  
As Sasuke's double's appeared around me, I raised my hands to perform the Body Substitute. No quicker than I did so, the images Sasuke made had attacked me, their kunai threatening to cut me as I switch places with my double. Seeing the fake Sasuke reappear in the former's place, I leap backwards into the trees and hide for a few minutes.  
  
The fight was most definitely not one sided. One of each of our doppledangers were destroyed, dissipating into nothingness as quick as it was made. My three remaining doppledangers fought against Sasuke's, dancing against my mirrors as we were before hand. Watching carefully, I drift back, farther and farther, trying to see the real Sasuke. No doubt he could see the real me with that blasted eye of his, but I needed to watch very carefully.  
  
One thing I did notice, was that one by one, Sasuke's doppledangers started their Shaharagin as well. Slowly, I place one handful of kunai down on the foliage, leaving one in my palm. Taking slow aim, I lean back in an arc to take careful aim. One of the Sasuke's had stumbled, being double teamed ironically by my doubles. -End game for you-   
  
The kunai flew strait and true, into the doubledangers throat. Seeing their friend fall, Sasuke's doppledangers took a defensive stance all at once. Then, with smooth precision, they smirked and dissipated. The real Sasuke walked calmly towards my three doppledangers. "Come on Naruto. Let's not fight like this anymore." He spit on the ground near one of my copy's shoes.   
  
The double moved his foot ever so slightly to avoid the spittle projectile. "Oh really Uchiha." Another double moved forward. "Or maybe we should just take you out right now?" The third crossed his arms. "It would be over so easy." Sasuke glared at the first one, and slowly fixed his eyes over to where I was.  
  
-Damn!- Was there no way to hide from that freaking eye of his?!  
  
I stand up, fixing eyes with my rival. "Begone." I whisper, and with a wave of my hand they disappear. Sasuke smirks at me. "Ever the one for dramatics." He smirks at me as I walk into the clearing. -He doesn't know... does he?- I smirk back at the Uchiha. I could see the sweat on his brow.  
  
"Hey Sasuke, going to copy me this time?" I laugh, watching his expression. "W-what?" I place my hands on my hips. "Sasuke, you forget. On our last mission, you couldn't hold the Saharagin for more than an hour. Knowing how you work, I added a half an hour for safety, but now I know." I slip my hand back for a kunai. "It's over."  
  
I watch Sasuke take an involuntary step back. "End Game pal." Gathering my chakra into my hands, I form the symbols quickly, readying to do one of my best moves. "THIRTEEN O'CLOCK!" Whipping my hands out, twelve doppledangers formed in a circle around him. "Hyaaaaaah!" Charging in, all thirteen of us attacked at the Uchiha.  
  
Or at least tried to.  
  
An elbow from the back crashed into my skull. I fell like a sack of potatoes. Struggling to my knees, I see my doppledangers preparing to attack, but stood there. That was when I felt the cold edge of Sasuke's favorite kunai against my throat. "You were right, it was end game." I could feel the steel bite against my flesh, but did not tear.  
  
The fight was over. He had won. The match would end when one had caused a near death scenario. Usually, only one of the two ever made it out. I repeated that point to myself, starting to wish he would be the one to make it out alive.  
  
I closed my eyes. -No.. NO!- I could feel the tears building up inside me. My dream.. I was so close. "Hey Naruto.." I open my eyes slowly, not trusting myself not to mourn over the ideal. "Good job..." I feel the kunai slowly remove itself, and in a split second I could feel the Kyubi burn inside my soul. Rage burned, feeding on the idea of killing my friend...  
  
"My... dream..." My cracked voice rasped out. Slowly, everything came crashing down, my perfect dream fracturing straight down the middle like a cracked diamond, and started breaking into a thousand pieces. I could feel Kyubi's rage trying to reach into my chakra [Kill him now!] It would say, [Destroy him before he gets away!]   
  
I could hear Sasuke's feet treading away, along with it every whispering of Kyubi fell on deafer and deafer ears. I had lost to Sasuke Uchiha. Rising to my feet rather stiffly, I look towards where my opponent had left.  
  
I grind my teeth, containing all of the welling emotions, and bow.....  
  
My eyes shut involuntarily as I humble myself, tears falling fast from my eyes.   
  
....towards the new Hokage of Konohagokure, Uchiha Sasuke, the 8th Hokage...  
  
*-*-*-*-*  
  
So did you like it, or do you hate it huh? Let me know how you feel. Flames will be accepted, praise will be acknowledged, but indifference will be ignored.   
  
Later, readers. 


End file.
